Transcript [00:00] what is going on in Lebanon in the [00:03] ongoing aspiration, the effort, the [00:06] desire to disarmah, to get rid of uh and [00:11] let's remember, by the way, the [00:12] namebalah, it's always spelled in the [00:14] media as h e zb o l l ahbah. [00:20] And that kind of obscures what the name [00:22] actually means. I've said this before, [00:25] Allah is a compound word. It's really [00:27] two words. It means the party of Allah, [00:29] the party of God. And I remember when [00:32] first started decades ago, there was a [00:34] dispute about how to spell it. And there [00:36] were all kinds of different spellings [00:37] out there. And somehow the world [00:38] community settled on the Oizbah. [00:42] And I prefer to call them his Allah [00:44] because that reminds everyone of who [00:46] these people actually are. They are the [00:47] party of Allah. This is a religious [00:50] movement. It is an it is an Islamic [00:52] movement. Anyway, let's get into what's [00:55] going on with right now. Uh the focus [00:58] has been on of course uh the Alahare [01:00] ridge which we're going to get into [01:02] extensively in this video. We're going [01:03] to talk about it. We're going to [01:04] understand its strategic importance. [01:06] I've talked about it in the past, but [01:08] here we're really going to drill down on [01:11] what's happening there and why both [01:13] politically and and militarily it's at a [01:15] very important site right now. But [01:18] first, let's just talk about the [01:19] headlines of the last few days. So, [01:22] Israel continues attacks across southern [01:24] Lebanon. This is a headline from just [01:25] two days ago, but it's still true today. [01:28] Israel continued its attacks across [01:29] several areas of southern Lebanon on [01:31] Saturday using artillery, shelling, air [01:34] strikes, explosions, and deliberately [01:36] setting fires. Let's This is Turkish [01:38] state media we're reading, by the way, [01:39] with most of the attacks concentrated in [01:42] Nabatia province. Nabatia province. [01:45] Let's pull that up. Let's pull up the [01:47] map. Nabatia is right around here. [01:51] Here's Nabatia. Okay, you see on your [01:53] map Nabatia right there. Okay, the red [01:58] marker is for Alitah Ridge. It's right [02:00] next to Nabatia. Nabatia is a city and [02:02] this entire area, this is like a [02:04] bigbollah stronghold. Bow for Castle is [02:07] right here. And Alahar here, this is a [02:10] this is a high uh u a high ridge that [02:15] overlooks uh the valleys around it and [02:17] the roads that go through here. It's a [02:19] very strategic area, and we're going to [02:20] get into that more in a few minutes. [02:23] Two explosions occurred near the [02:24] outskirts of Ita al- Jabal in southern [02:27] Lebanon. According to Lebanon's national [02:29] news agency, [02:31] uh Israeli war plananes launched a [02:34] series of air strikes uh in an area [02:36] between the Aldair neighborhood and the [02:39] Ali Alaher hills on the northern [02:42] outskirts of Nabatia Alfala rep reported [02:46] NNA. So Nabatia Alfala is just southwest [02:51] of south east of Nabatia. Here's Nabatia [02:53] Alfala and the Alitay ridge. So it's all [02:56] this is the this is the hot area if you [02:59] want to see where it is in terms of uh [03:01] the map. So here this this is the border [03:04] with Israel along here and you see how [03:06] close it is. Uh so Israel's northern [03:09] community up here, Kiryat Shmona uh is [03:13] uh is you know and Matula Israel's [03:16] northernmost town is really only about [03:19] uh it's only about 10 kilometers away [03:21] from this from this uh from this ridge. [03:24] Okay. [03:27] Israel has no intention of withdrawing [03:28] from the Ali Alah Hills despite US [03:30] pressure to continue its withdrawal. [03:32] called the Israeli newspaper MAR [03:34] reported Saturday. The position runs [03:36] counter to a US sponsored negotiation [03:38] process aimed at completing the [03:39] withdrawal of Israeli forces from [03:41] Lebanese territory. That's not exactly [03:43] true. We'll get into that more in a bit. [03:45] And here, this is from yesterday. [03:48] Israeli source reports fighters trapped [03:51] in Ali Alah Heights. An Israeli source [03:54] informed Al-Hadath that dozens of [03:58] members are still encircled in the Ali [04:00] Alaher Heights in southern Lebanon and [04:03] that several of them have escaped from [04:05] the area toward nearby locations. The [04:07] same Israeli source stated that the [04:08] Israeli army has imposed a tight siege [04:11] on the Ali Alaher Heights and on the [04:14] entrances to the compound and recently [04:16] damaged parts of the infrastructure [04:18] there. Let me explain what's going on [04:19] here. We're going to learn about this [04:21] now in a minute. We're about to look at [04:22] a source that will really explain this, [04:24] but on that map I showed you where where [04:26] Ali Taher is. It's not just that it's [04:29] high ground. It's not a little town. [04:31] This is the headquarters compound. And [04:35] right now, there are [04:37] uh personnel who are stuck underground [04:41] and Israel is controlling the area. [04:43] We're going to learn a lot more about it [04:45] um in just a minute. Before we get to [04:47] that, I just want to uh to you know [04:50] share something important with you, [04:53] which is that uh the high holiday season [04:56] is approaching. Russia Shana is less [04:58] than two weeks away. And right now in [05:01] Israel, there are families who will not [05:02] have food on the table for the holiday [05:05] because they simply cannot afford to. [05:07] And this month, the team at Israel 365 [05:09] charity is running a dedicated campaign [05:12] to assist these families and make sure [05:14] that they can celebrate with their [05:15] children like the rest of the Jewish [05:17] people. We are putting together massive [05:20] food packages that will be handd [05:21] delivered to people's doorstep. And [05:24] we're also sponsoring participants to [05:26] attend a deluxe holiday meal that will [05:29] be hosted in Jerusalem. If this [05:30] initiative speaks to you, I ask that you [05:32] join us and help make a difference for [05:34] these people. click the link in the [05:36] description of this video and make sure [05:38] that no family in Israel sits at an [05:40] empty table for the holidays. Or you [05:42] could also just go to israel 365 [05:44] charity.com [05:46] and go to our projects. And the first [05:48] project listed there uh these days is is [05:53] uh is this one is help hungry families [05:55] survive the holiday. Sponsor a holiday [05:58] meal for a hungry Israeli family. You [06:00] know, part of our festivities has to be [06:02] caring for the needy. Okay, there was uh [06:05] so this paper was released today, [06:09] literally just a couple of hour ago, [06:11] hours ago, it was released by a think [06:14] tank, a very interesting and important [06:16] think tank in Israel called the Amit [06:17] Terrorism and Intelligence Research [06:20] Institute. Okay. And they they released [06:24] a paper on the on Ali Taher Ridge. So [06:28] I'm not we're not going to read the [06:29] entire paper. I'm just going to read key [06:31] points of it so we understand what we're [06:33] dealing with in in Amit in the Amit in [06:36] Institute assessment. The situation on [06:38] Ali Taher Ridge actually know we're [06:41] going to read this assessment when we're [06:42] done. We're going to come back to it [06:43] when we finish everything else. So, [06:46] first of all, what is the Alit Ridge? [06:47] The Ality Ridge, which rises to [06:49] approximately 600 meters above sea [06:51] level, [06:54] is located [06:59] uh north of the Latani River and Bowfort [07:01] Castle and commands extensive areas that [07:03] include the town of Al- Nabatia, the [07:06] village of Tnin and Eklim Maltufa region [07:09] and Jabal Al- Rihan. Its location [07:12] provides observation and attack [07:15] capabilities and controls the major [07:17] transportation routes connecting the [07:20] coastal area Nabatia the Becca Valley Ty [07:24] and Marjayun. Let me show that to you on [07:26] a map just so you understand it. Let's [07:28] let's uh zero in again on it. [07:32] Here we go. Here's the Ality ridge. So [07:34] you have these you have these lower [07:37] lands here. Here's Margayun. Here's [07:39] Nabatia. There are major uh uh [07:42] transportation routes that pass through [07:44] here. Okay, so this is a critical [07:47] juncture and it's also very close to the [07:49] Israeli border. Okay, that's Ali Taher [07:52] Ridge. [07:54] According to Brigadier General Khalil [07:56] al- Jamil, former commander of the [07:58] Lebanese Army South Latani sector, he [08:01] said that the facility was apparently [08:03] headquarters of the Badr unit that is a [08:06] kizbah uh unit, the Ali combat unit. The [08:10] Ali alaher ridge consists of three [08:13] interconnected hills, Ali Alaher, Alaba [08:17] and Alahara. And according to Aljile, [08:20] this former commander, assessments [08:22] indicate that the area contains a [08:24] network of interconnected tunnels [08:28] extending along the high ground and [08:30] toward the surrounding villages. And a [08:32] site of that size requires more than 100 [08:34] operatives to operate and manage it. [08:38] Okay. So, it's it's on it's a series of [08:42] of three hills, this ridge, and there's [08:46] this extensive underground [08:49] tunnel system under it, and it was the [08:52] headquarters of this unit. A Lebanese [08:54] military source noted maintained the [08:57] Immad for facility beneath the ridge [09:00] where precision missiles and heavy [09:02] rockets are stored. Asbalah revealed in [09:05] a video published in 2024. [09:09] Lebanese security sources said they had [09:11] information indicating that commanders [09:13] and combat and technical operatives from [09:16] the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, the [09:19] Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps were [09:21] also present at the underground area of [09:23] the Ali Alire Ridge. And it was reported [09:26] recently that some of them were that [09:27] they were there were personnel from the [09:29] IRGC who were stuck underneath. But [09:31] we're going to see that that's turned [09:32] out to maybe not be the case anymore. It [09:35] was also reported that Lebanese security [09:37] had information about Iranian efforts to [09:40] reinforce its presence on the ground in [09:42] South Lebanon, particularly in the [09:43] vicinity of Ali Alah Ali Taher Ridge by [09:47] increasing the presence of the [09:48] Revolutionary Guard operives operatives [09:50] and infiltrating them into Lebanon with [09:53] forged passports. In response, Mahmud [09:56] Kamati, deputy chairman of the Kisbellah [09:59] Political Council, claimed that there [10:01] were no Iranian fighters in the [10:03] organization's ranks in South Lebanon. [10:06] Media information department also denied [10:08] reports in the Arab media that more than [10:10] 100bollah and revolutionary guard [10:12] operatives were present in the compound. [10:15] Now, why is that an issue? Who cares if [10:17] there are RGC guys there or not? And why [10:20] would the wouldisbah deny it? Everyone [10:22] knows that is an arm of Iran is funded [10:24] by Iran, but it's all part of this kind [10:26] of dog and pony show that they try to [10:29] play withah, which is claiming that they [10:31] are a Lebanese group, that they're not [10:34] really an arm of the Iranians. So, they [10:36] always want to say, "No, no, no, no, no. [10:37] The Iranians aren't here. The Iranians [10:39] aren't here." It's also because the [10:41] United States is at war with Iran right [10:43] now and is trying to get uh is and and [10:48] the and the Lebanese government frankly [10:49] is trying to get Israel to back off and [10:52] get the Americans to pressure Israel to [10:54] back off. So if there are Iranian [10:58] personnel, [11:00] it's kind of hard to convince the [11:02] Americans that Israel should go easy on [11:04] them when America is at war with Iran. [11:07] Okay? it's kind of harder to to come to [11:09] uh to an agreement, but the main reason [11:11] I believe is the political reason [11:12] internally that presents itself as a [11:15] Lebanese militia that is defending [11:17] Lebanon. And if there are Iranian if [11:19] there are Iranian uh if there are IRGC [11:22] personnel there, that kind of undermines [11:24] their narrative. [11:26] Okay, let's keep going. Meanwhile, the [11:29] Iranian leadership reportedly informed [11:31] the leadership that it would not abandon [11:34] the organization in the confrontation. [11:36] This is just from 10 days ago. [11:38] Subsequently, sources close toah were [11:41] quoted as saying that the organization [11:42] was counting on Iranian intervention if [11:46] Israel attempted to capture the ridge. [11:48] They told that to Ashar Kalat, an Arab [11:51] uh an Arab outlet. Media outlets in [11:53] Lebanon then raised concerns regarding [11:55] the consequences if an Israeli move to [11:58] take control of the ridge wounded or [12:00] killed Revolutionary Guard officers and [12:02] operatives allegedly present at the [12:04] site. In other words, here's what's [12:06] happening. And I remember this report [12:08] when it came out about 10 days ago that [12:10] the Iranians said that they that, you [12:12] know, that they will protect if Israel [12:15] tries to take Ali Taher rich. [12:18] And when that report came out, that made [12:20] Lebanese people very nervous because if [12:23] Iran is claiming that they're not going [12:25] to abandon if Israel takes Ali Taher, [12:28] and that means that the Iranians are [12:29] saying that they're going to attack [12:30] Israel, which I don't believe that [12:32] they're going to do. I don't believe the [12:34] Iranians will attack Israel for all the [12:36] reasons we've talked about in videos [12:37] about that about Iran, which is the [12:40] Iranians are terrified of the Israelis [12:43] throughout this ever since the ceasefire [12:45] went into effect on April 8th. They had [12:46] they've fired one rocket at Israel and [12:49] it was when Israel bombed Beirut and [12:51] they immediately backed down because [12:53] Israel took very very decisive action [12:55] against them. They're not touching [12:57] Israel. With all of the kinetic [12:59] escalation over the summer in July, [13:01] there wasn't a They weren't they were [13:04] attacking everybody except Israel [13:05] because they're terrified of Israel of [13:08] what Israel will do if they bring them [13:09] back into the war. But nevertheless, [13:12] it's making it's making everyone in [13:14] Lebanon nervous because they know that [13:16] if Iran does step in to help against [13:19] Israel, that's going to invite [13:22] uh escalation from the Israelis. [13:25] However, after several weeks, according [13:27] to the reports, an IDF in IDF [13:29] assessment, there are no Iranian [13:32] officers or operatives trapped in the [13:34] underground compound on the Ali Alah [13:36] Ridge. That came out two days ago. They [13:38] determined that there actually aren't [13:39] any Iranians there. [13:41] Now, according to Lebanese reports, [13:44] Israel is isolating the Alt Taher Ridge [13:46] while disrupting supply routes and [13:49] exhausting forces trapped inside the [13:52] tunnels. to understand the let me make [13:54] sure we understand the situation. You [13:55] have this tunnel network underneath the [13:57] ridge. You have operatives, we don't [14:00] know how many, stuck inside. Israel is [14:04] on top is above ground and they're [14:06] controlling all of the entrances [14:08] and they're basically have laid siege to [14:12] Alah Ridge. And Israel is also because [14:16] they have the high ground and they're up [14:17] top, they're also disrupting the supply [14:19] routes [14:21] to Ality Ridge. Okay, that's what's [14:24] happening here. [14:27] Reportedly, Israeli activity in the area [14:29] caused a large number of casualties [14:31] among operatives and Revolutionary Guard [14:33] personnel. According to Lebanese [14:36] commentators, Israeli control of the [14:38] ridge would mean the collapse of second [14:41] line of defense and the loss of the [14:43] remainder of its military capabilities [14:45] in the south, thereby paving the way for [14:48] the IDF to advance toward Iklim and [14:50] Altufa and se and separate the south [14:53] from the western Becca Valley. This is a [14:57] very important sentence. What they're [14:59] explaining to us is that [15:03] Alitire Ridge is kind of like the [15:06] gateway to the rest of capabilities in [15:10] that area, [15:12] right? It would cause the loss of its [15:14] the remainder of its military [15:16] capabilities in the south and allow the [15:18] the IDF to to operate much more freely [15:22] in the broader region. However, despite [15:24] Israeli military pressure, for the time [15:26] being, [15:28] appears to maintain its hold on the [15:29] area. According to a senior [15:31] parliamentary source close to the Shiite [15:33] block, rotated its forces using secret [15:37] access routes. Remember, these are [15:38] tunnels. Israel hasn't necessarily found [15:40] all the entrances, which remain under [15:43] its control. If you think to the tunnels [15:45] in in um in Gaza, a lot of the entrances [15:48] to those tunnels were like under a bed [15:51] in a bedroom in a house and things like [15:52] that. And there's all these villages [15:54] around the Aliter ridge. And what it [15:56] said here is that is that they've built [15:59] this underground network in that it [16:02] leads into all these various towns. So [16:04] they've been able, this is what it says [16:06] here, to actually rotate the soldiers in [16:08] there. Now, why aren't they all simply [16:10] evacuating? Because they don't want to [16:11] give it up. They don't want to lose [16:13] AliE. [16:15] Diplomatic sources noted that the United [16:17] States was working to restrain IDF [16:19] activity. [16:23] Are you catching this? Diplomatic [16:25] sources noted that the United States was [16:27] working to restrain IDF activity and [16:31] prevent a largecale military operation [16:33] to capture the entire site, although it [16:36] provides political backing for measures [16:38] focused on limited surgical operations [16:41] and the continued encirclement of the [16:43] tunnels in the area. Meaning the US is [16:45] basically saying, "Listen, Israel, I [16:47] know you got to do this, but just like [16:48] keep it on a low boil. This is America [16:51] trying to restrain Israel again." And [16:53] this is kind of this is the whole [16:55] balancing act that the Americans are [16:57] always playing in the Middle East, [16:58] thinking that they can make everybody [16:59] happy. So they want so they're so [17:01] they're kind of on Israel's side, but if [17:03] Israel starts really, you know, really [17:05] finishing the job or really escalating, [17:07] then no, no, no, no, no, tamp it down. [17:08] Like they want us to get rid of and get [17:10] rid of their weapons, but to do it uh I [17:12] don't know, quietly. I don't know. It's [17:14] It's frustrating. Reportedly, that [17:16] reflects the an American concern that a [17:19] broad Israeli operation to capture the [17:22] ridge would car would cause large [17:24] numbers of casualties, [17:26] including Iranians. Okay. If they're [17:28] there, which could lead to a direct [17:31] Iranian response against Israel and [17:33] reignite a regional campaign. [17:37] that could happen if Iran would respond [17:40] against Israel and it would reignite a [17:42] campaign and it would hasten the end of [17:44] the Iranian regime. This is all look [17:49] I talk about this a lot with Dr. Worms [17:51] if you you know if you go to the Israel [17:53] 365 news channel every Sunday we put up [17:55] a conversation that I have with Dr. [17:57] Worms and we talked about it again this [17:58] week. There's this there's this fear of [18:03] victory, it seems, that has that has [18:06] just it's this like disease that has [18:09] taken over the West that they're afraid [18:11] to just destroy evil, destroy enemies, [18:15] just win. And they think that that the [18:18] that the path of greater peace and [18:20] morality and ethics is negotiation and [18:24] tamping things down and deescalation, [18:26] but it's not. That's the path to forever [18:29] conflict. And the only way to actually [18:31] get to a point where we're not [18:33] constantly in these skirmishes is to [18:36] actually drive towards victory. They [18:37] just don't get this. And this is another [18:39] example of it. Lebanese sources said [18:42] that during the seventh round of direct [18:44] negotiations held in Rome, this is [18:45] really interesting passage here. This is [18:48] talking about the Rome negotiations in [18:50] Rome that took place a few weeks ago [18:52] between the Israelis and the Lebanese. [18:54] Okay, so look what it says here. that [18:57] according to Lebanese sources during [18:58] those negotiations in early August the [19:01] Lebanese delegation demanded that the [19:04] pilot zones be expanded and then names a [19:08] few other towns that they wanted them to [19:09] to be expanded to. Now the pilot zones [19:12] in the Lebanon Israel agreement that was [19:14] signed back in June. [19:17] The what the agreement said is that [19:20] Israel as it clears out areas fromah [19:24] will withdraw from a couple of towns, a [19:27] couple of spots [19:29] that have been cleaned out fromah and [19:32] transfer them over to the Lebanese army [19:35] and that the Lebanese army will then be [19:37] responsible for their security. And if [19:38] they can show that they responsibly can [19:40] hold those areas and prevent them from [19:42] from becoming [19:45] uh [19:48] centers again prevent rearming prevent [19:51] you know if they can hold them [19:53] effectively then Israel will [19:54] progressively withdraw from other pilot [19:57] zones. So they've withdrawn from these [19:58] two pilot zones initially and [20:04] Israel hasn't withdrawn any further [20:05] because not going anywhere. Okay. So, [20:09] what happened in these talks? In those [20:10] talks in early August, the Lebanese [20:12] wanted Israel to do to withdraw from [20:14] more towns. And Israel said no. However, [20:17] Israel reportedly conditioned expansion [20:20] of the pilot zone program on the [20:22] dismantling of military infrastructure [20:25] in the Ali Taher Ridge area. Meaning, [20:27] this place, Ali Taher, is not just [20:29] another site in Lebanon. That's the [20:30] theme of this whole video. This is the [20:32] epicenter. This is the headquarters. [20:35] This is the gateway to to undermining's [20:38] hold on the entire South Lebanon. [20:41] So when what it's saying here is that at [20:44] the negotiations in Rome when the [20:45] Lebanese said that they want Israel to [20:47] withdraw more, Israel said we're only [20:49] going to consider draw withdrawing more [20:51] if if uh if military infrastructure in [20:55] Ali Taher is completely gone to break [20:58] the deadlock. So that's this is so that [21:01] was a deadlock in the negotiations. To [21:03] break the deadlock, Lebanese President [21:05] Joseph Aun proposed that operatives [21:08] withdraw from the ridge and Lebanese [21:10] army forces enter the area. Aoon [21:13] reportedly briefed parliament speaker [21:16] and Amal leader Nabi Berry. Amal is a [21:18] Shiite party that is usually somewhat [21:21] friendly tobah but not exactly. [21:23] Sometimes they're at odds with them. But [21:25] Nabi Berry is is uh is again the speaker [21:28] of the parliament. Speaker of the [21:30] parliament in Lebanon is always a [21:32] Shiite. So Nabi Berry is the speaker of [21:34] the parliament. And Joseph Aun who is [21:37] the president, he's a Christian. He [21:38] spoke to Nabi Berry about this about the [21:42] Lebanese army taking over Ali Taher [21:44] Ridge from In other words whenever Aoon [21:48] wants to talk to he doesn't talk to [21:50] directly. He talks to Nabi Berry to get [21:52] them to talk to. [21:54] So Aun reportedly briefed Parliament [21:56] Speaker Alama leader Nabi Berrybellah's [21:58] ally on the matter and discussed it with [22:00] representatives of the American [22:01] administration. Everyone liked the idea [22:04] right of handing it over to the Lebanese [22:06] army exceptah. [22:09] But the Lebanese army also wasn't so [22:10] happy. However, the Lebanese army [22:12] reportedly rejected the idea and [22:15] conveyed its reservations to President [22:17] Dun. The army noted the need for [22:19] American guarantees ensuring the IDF [22:22] would not seek to enter the facility on [22:25] the grounds that it had to verify the [22:26] dismantling of the military [22:27] infrastructure. Aha. You see what [22:29] happened here? The Lebanese army [22:33] wasn't on board with the program. You [22:36] see what they said was, "Well, [22:40] we have reservations. You see, we don't [22:42] mind taking it over, but you can't have [22:45] us take it over and then have the [22:47] Israelis come in to check if it's [22:49] actually disarmed, if has actually been [22:52] disarmed. They refused to allow the [22:53] Israelis to be the ones to verify. This [22:56] was this was by the way one of the main [22:57] reasons why those negotiations broke [22:59] down in Rome a few weeks ago was that [23:02] the Lebanese wanted they didn't want to [23:04] allow Israel to have any say in [23:08] verifying's [23:10] disarmament and is Israel of course is [23:12] like we're not going to trust anyone [23:13] else [23:19] continued to strongly oppose any [23:21] possibility of withdrawing from the Alar [23:22] ridge so I mean the whole thing's [23:24] academic because they're refusing to [23:26] anyway. [23:27] Also said that if the proposal regarding [23:29] the ali ridge were accepted, Israel [23:32] would demand the evacuation of other [23:34] resistance sites. Resistance meaning [23:36] means such as Maltufa and the western [23:39] Becca Valley as well as areas in south [23:41] Lebanon and the Becca Valley. And this [23:43] is absolutely correct is right. If [23:45] Israel, if Israel uh forces withdrawal, [23:48] if withdraws from Alitire, Israel will [23:51] move on to the next site where they are [23:53] because Israel's goal is to get rid of [23:56] completely despite's hardline positions [23:58] and claims of unwillingness to [24:00] relinquish the area. Sources close toah [24:03] said it had held discussions about the [24:05] possibility of evacuating its fighters [24:07] from the Aliatara Ridge and blowing up [24:10] its outposts in the area. that was [24:12] considered the last resort and making a [24:14] difficult choice to prevent Israel from [24:17] exposing the weapons and capabilities [24:19] the organization maintained on the [24:20] ridge. In other words, what this is [24:22] saying is that has it's been [24:25] uh [24:27] there are reports there are sources that [24:31] have revealed that has had discussions [24:33] that if push comes to shove their [24:35] doomsday scenario for Ali Tire is that [24:38] if they have to leave they're going to [24:40] blow it up. [24:41] so that Israel can't uh expose what was [24:46] there. [24:47] Okay, destroy the scene of the crime. [24:50] Now, let's get to their uh the [24:52] assessment that the Amit Center puts on [24:54] this whole piece because it's a really [24:56] good piece of analysis. In the Amit [24:58] Institute assessment, the situation on [25:00] the Allet Taher Ridge challenged in two [25:02] ways. On the military level, loss of its [25:06] control would impair the organization's [25:09] ability to manage its military systems [25:11] in South Lebanon, [25:12] allowing the IDF to expand its [25:14] operations to dismantle the [25:16] organization's infrastructure in other [25:18] parts of Lebanon, especially in the [25:19] Becca Valley. On the political level, [25:22] the site is located north of the Latani [25:25] River, which in principle is beyond what [25:27] is prepared to transfer to the Lebanese [25:29] army as part of implementing resolution [25:31] 1701. [25:33] Therefore, any decision regarding Ali [25:35] Taher ridge would be a precedent which [25:36] could also be applied to its military [25:38] assets in other part of Lebanon. Let me [25:40] explain this. So, first of all, he's [25:42] saying militarily [25:44] if they lose Ali Taher, they lose as we [25:46] talked about it's a strategic loss for [25:48] them for the whole region on the [25:50] political level because Ali Tire is [25:53] north of the Latani. There is a UN [25:57] resolution [25:58] uh UN Security Council resolution 1701. [26:02] It's old, which calls for [26:05] the area south of the Leani River to be [26:10] completely demilitarized. And has been [26:12] in constant violation of that, but they [26:15] pretend [26:16] that they that they uh that they're not [26:21] in violation of it. And everyone always [26:22] brings it up as the as the as the uh as [26:26] the resolution that needs to be [26:27] implemented. [26:29] Israel withdraws [26:31] and everything south of the Latani is [26:33] demilitarized. That's basically what [26:34] 1701 says. So because the Alitah ridge [26:38] is north of the Latani River, is worried [26:42] politically about the precedent that it [26:45] sets that it basically would grant [26:48] Israel a an even freer hand to start [26:51] pushing forbah to be dismantled in other [26:53] parts of Lebanon that are north of the [26:55] Latani River. And they don't want to go [26:57] there. Meanwhile, the issue of control [27:00] of Alitah Ridge is becoming a test of [27:02] the Lebanese government's ability to [27:04] meet its commitment to dismantle [27:05] Hezbollah's infrastructure. The Lebanese [27:07] army's reluctance to confront operatives [27:10] holding the site, as well as concern [27:12] over a direct Iranian response against [27:14] Israel, [27:17] reflect the extent of the challenge the [27:19] issue poses in the internal Lebanese [27:21] arena, in the confrontation between [27:23] Israel and in the attempt to reach an [27:26] agreement between Israel and Lebanon. a [27:28] fantastic piece of analysis. Really [27:30] gives us a sense of where things are [27:32] with the Ali Taher Ridge. Let me just [27:35] sum this up. Um, [27:39] let me sum this whole thing up. [27:42] You know, when things aren't in the [27:44] headlines in a big way, we almost feel [27:46] like they're they're on hold. [27:49] Lebanon's not on hold. Israel's striking [27:52] there every day. Israel is still taking [27:55] outbah infrastructure. It's still taking [27:58] out operatives on a daily basis, but the [28:01] focal point is the Alitah ridge. Because [28:04] if Israel takes the Alit ridge, if [28:06] Israel cleans it out of allah [28:09] destroys all of the infrastructure [28:11] there, that is that delivers a very [28:16] significant almost decisive strategic [28:19] blow tobah's operations in South Lebanon [28:22] because uh both in terms of its [28:25] topographical spot, in terms of its [28:27] ability to control it, it's the high [28:30] ground and they could look in, you know, [28:32] in terms of looking uh eastward and [28:34] southeastward into Israel in terms of [28:36] the trade uh you know the trade routes [28:38] that are there. They've got this great [28:39] tunnel network that leads into all the [28:41] Shiite villages around. It's where they [28:43] stored their missiles. It is the [28:45] headquarters. It's the it's the it's the [28:48] it's the beating heart of South Lebanon. [28:51] So if Israel takes it, it deals this [28:52] major strategic blow. And right now is [28:55] trying to be a little bit quiet about [28:56] it. They don't they don't want to scream [28:58] too much about Ali Tire in public [29:00] because if they do then you know that [29:04] could actually make it uh make things [29:07] even more difficult for them in terms of [29:09] the Lebanese government. So everything [29:12] is in this uh in you know it's very [29:14] tense forbah right now. They're scared [29:16] out of their minds because Israel is not [29:18] budging an inch on this point. And uh [29:21] yeah yeah that's the Ali Tahare [29:23] situation. I was going to add a few more [29:25] items to this video, but I think it's [29:26] gone on long enough and we get the basic [29:29] idea. Uh, I guess one last headline, and [29:31] this was this is almost for comic [29:33] relief, sadly. Washington tobah, lay [29:35] down your arms and stop taking orders [29:37] from Iran. This is from the State [29:39] Department X account. Um, and this is [29:42] this the reason I say it's kind of comic [29:44] relief is that [29:47] if the United States is going along with [29:49] this [29:51] fiction that is somehow separate from [29:55] Iran, telling it to stop taking orders [29:58] from Iran, [30:00] let me make something very clear. [30:03] Is not [30:07] really a proxy of Iran. We call it a [30:11] proxy. What I mean by that is kamas [30:16] independent organization [30:19] and received funding from Iran. That's a [30:21] proxy. The Houthis are an independent [30:24] organization. They receive funding and [30:26] support from Iran and they support Iran. [30:28] They're a proxy. [30:30] Is is beyond that. Is actually Iran. The [30:36] leader ofah is appointed in Tehran. [30:40] Saying that saying that is a proxy of [30:43] Iran is just like saying that when [30:46] America has troops stationed in another [30:48] country that those troops are a proxy of [30:51] the United States. They're not a proxy [30:52] of the United States. They are the [30:55] United States. That's relationship to [30:57] Iran. So what so if you have the State [30:59] Department telling to stop taking orders [31:01] from Iran, it doesn't even mean [31:02] anything. [31:04] They're a branch of Iran. They work for [31:06] Iran. [31:08] That's that that that's who they are. [31:10] So, whatever. Just wanted to throw that [31:13] in there at the end. Let's leave this [31:15] where it is. God bless. Thanks for [31:17] watching.
